Missouri Wrestling Revival honors Referee Dave Hebner

Missouri Wrestling Revival was recently in Caseyville Illinois for HVW at the VFW for a great night of wrestling. During the intermission we had the pleasure to present Dave Hebner with a MWR Lifetime Achievement award along with our good friend Nick Ridenour.

Dave Hebner along with his brother current TNA referee Earl  is known around the world, as the two had been involved arguably with the biggest angle in the 80’s when the evil Hebner cost Hulk Hogan the WWE title to Andre the Giant.

Who can forget the Montreal Screwjob? The Hebners once again cost another champion the title as Bret Hart was the victim this time as Shawn Michaels took home the belt.

Dave Hebner has refereed around the world, on the biggest stage including Wrestlemania, as well as TNA.

Photo Credit Mike Van Hoogstraat

Hebner has spent a considerable amount of time in St Louis supporting a Pro Wrestling shop in the past, made appearances with promotions MMWA-SICW while taking the time with each and every fan he has came across.

The Hebners are truly worthy of a WWE Hall of Fame induction but till then we are proud to present Dave Hebner with a MWR Lifetime Achievement award.

Dave had his head worked out trying to maintain order between the world Champ and then NWA Central States Champ. *Photo Credit Mike Van Hoogstraat*

Dave also took part in refereeing two of the biggest matches that night when Mark Sterling took on former AWA Champion Larry Zbyszko while Santana G returned home to St Louis to meet the former MWR Female Wrestler of the Year Stacey O’ Brien.

Stacey O and Santana G met for the first time ever but not the last we hope.*Photo Credit Mike Van Hoogstraat*

Dave Hebner was the fourth person to receive a MWR Lifetime Achievement Award with
2008 Harley Race
2009 Larry Matysik
2010 Mike Chapman

We are looking forward to presenting Mike Chapman with his MWR 2010 Lifetime Achievement award later this summer.

Big Rick Fuller *Photo Credit Mike Van Hoogstraat*

MWR was also very proud to have “BIG” Rick Fuller wear the MWR Shirt during his match with Alexandre Rudolph and later in the night winning the battle Royal featuring stars around the Midwest last eliminating Brandon Espinosa.

You may have seen Rick Fuller in a cameo appearance in the great movie “The Fighter” based on the Life story of boxer “Irish” Mickey Ward and his trainer brother Dick Eklund, chronicling the brothers’ early days on the rough streets of Lowell, Massachusetts through Eklund’s battle with drugs and Ward’s eventual world championship in London. Starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, and , Amy Adams look for Fuller as a bouncer that tries to stop Mark Wahlberg character Mickey Ward.

Fuller a former WCW and star of Japan made a rare appearance in the Midwest for a great night of wrestling action.

Lars Manderson – Working hard to live the dream of a Pro Wrestler.

By Kenneth Scott

Well wrestling fans after about a year hiatus from writing and wrestling I am back. I have gone through a lot of rosters from shows around the Mid-West and I have decided to get to know Lars Manderson a little bit better.

When Lars was a kid he was captivated by wrestling at a very young age. His first live show that he can remember was a WCW (World Championship Wrestling) house show that was held at the Shrine Mosque in Springfield, Missouri. After seeing all the action packed matches he was hooked on wrestling. The characters were larger than life. He never thought that he would be big enough to some day be one of them.

Growing up as a kid him and his best friend would have matches in the backyard. They spread couch cushions all over the yard and they would do high flying stunts like elbow drops of the deck. Like all kids that are wrestling fans they had al the latest WCW or WWE (well back then it was WWF) video games. They spent many wasted hours between wrestling video games and Mortal Kombat.

Now one of the the things fans want to always know is how Lars got started in the wrestling business. Well when he decided that he really wanted to be a wrestler he had no clue where to start or even how to get in it, so he signed up for Harley Race’s Wrestling Camp. A few days after signing up for the camp his mom found an article in a magazine about a pro-wrestler from the area he was from. That wrestler was going to be signed by the WWE. This pro-wrestler was currently in the WWE training camp for up and coming wrestlers called Ohio Valley Wrestling. After reading that he put it out of his mind and thought nothing about it.

A few months after this had happened Lars was working at the Powerhouse Gym, as a trainer. While working a moderately large man with long hair walked into the gym. He knew the man looked familiar, so he went and grabbed the magazine he read about the star that was going to sign with the WWE and sure enough it was him, “Mr. Saturday Night” Michael Barry. Lars approached him introduced himself and told him he was interested in the business, so they set-up a time to sit down and talk.

Lars Manderson and fellow up and comer The Hoodlum realizes that to get to the top that they have to go all out every during every match.

After talking to Barry it was time to get busy and start training. While training to become a wrestler you have many obstacles to overcome and one that stood out the most for Lars was being close to a ring to actually train in. He had to travel 70 miles or more to get any kind of training in. Every time Michael Barry was booked somewhere he had to be there a few hours early and hope to get some ring time in for his training. He remembers quite well early in his training having to drive to a show in Colorado Springs, Colorado, a thirteen hour drive to get there. When he got there the promoter let him have about 15 minutes of ring time to train. After the event was over he drove straight back through Colorado, Kansas, and back home to Missouri. I know as well as anyone else that 15 minutes of job training isn’t very much but to get any training in at all I’m sure was a blessing. Lars also expressed that the other bad thing about being the rookie or the young guy is that you do all the driving. So three days with no sleep for just fifteen minutes of training to get your foot in the door is hard to do.

Big Elbow from Lars would lead him towards a victory at Metro Pro Wrestling (Photo Credit Brian Kelley)

Lars had a lot of inspirations to keep training but the one that stuck out in his head the most was his dad. You may think an inspiration would be someone or something that is positive and gives you positive feedback and tells you to keep going. Well his was not the way you would think inspiration would be. His dad hated the fact that he wanted to wrestle. His dad thinks that wrestling is trashy and couldn’t understand why he couldn’t just be happy staying at home doing nothing. Every time his dad would tell him what a mistake he was making it would make him work that much harder just to prove him wrong. Lars also had the inspiration that God didn’t always bless everyone with the size, brains, and athletic ability to be successful in pro-wrestling, but was so glad that he did give him all those. “I just try to use it to the best of my ability and not waste it,” Lars said.

He has taken on some of the very best including some hard hitting matches with MR Saturday Night Michael Barry. (Photo Credit Brian Kelley)

Many times when we are working so hard at something sometimes it gets so hard and so tough you just want to give up and just forget about it. Well Lars went through something like that during his training to become a wrestler.

During the second year of wrestling Lars had to quit for about 9 months to rehab a shoulder injury. This also was a time when he was having relationship problems with his wife. At this time wrestling took the brunt of the hits when it came to arguments. His wife thought that wrestling was replacing her. The worst part is that he loved his wife and at the same time he loved wrestling and both made him happy. “It was probably one of the darkest few months of my life, I was extremely depressed and fell off the face of the wrestling world for a short time,” Lars stated. Lars finally realized that there was nothing wrong for being the way he was and that to be happy he would have to be the person to try for outlandish things. Lars said, “it is better to try and fail than to never try at all.” He also said, “You will never know your limits if you don’t hit them.” Lars didn’t want to have any regrets and said, “I don’t want to become an old man and think ‘I could’ve done this,’ or ‘I could’ve done that too.’”

Lars like many other aspiring wrestlers has the same goal to be on top of the business at the highest level possible. “That doesn’t necessarily mean championships to me,” he said. He wants to be working in New York and wants to be the most loved or hated wrestler on the roster.

As a wrestler to gain popularity and also earn respect from other fellow wrestlers and wrestling companies you have to travel a lot and go to many different venues. That is no different to Lars working in promotions in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Arkansas, and Missouri. One thing that stands out to me the most about Lars is when I asked him if he has held any championships and he told me that he doesn’t want a title unless the company wants or needs him to hold one. “I see a lot of guys that need a title to get over with the crowd, I never want to be that guy,” Lars told me. I don’t know about you but seeing Lars in person he enters the stage you just know that he wants and loves the business. He also told me, “If I can’t get a crowd to boo me or cheer for me without flashing a title around my waste then I don’t need to be in this business, a title is a prop to too many people.”

Look for Lars moving up the ladder in 2011.(Photo Credit Brian Kelley)

In wrestling each wrestler has a role they play either face (the good guy) or heel (the bad guy). Lars is a natural face. He tells me that it is more difficult for him to play the heel because his heel characteristics don’t quite fit his body type. He loves being a face because it comes so much easier to him. He sad “if I put the energy out there from the moment that I hit the curtain I always seem to get a good response from the crowd.”

Lars hasn’t been exposed to many tag-team matches, he tends to be more of the big singles wrestler. He prefers to do singles matches than tag teams. He does respect tag teams though especially when they do it right and look good doing it. “A well oiled tag team is a thing of beauty,” Lars said. One of his favorite tag-teams to watch is the Jetsetters (Dustin Heritage and Jack Legacy). He says they work great together and says the way they work together should be studied by most of the young and up and coming tag teams.

Now in this next section I have asked wrestlers that either Lars has wrestled or know him what they think about Lars.

“Lars is a great young talent that will do good in this business.” Michael Strider

“Mr. Saturday Night” Michael Barry has this to say about Lars, “Lars is undboubtedly one of the quickest learners I have ever came across in the ring and with the politics in the back. The kid’s got a great head for the business bottom line. Looks, charisma and a desire to be the best (secondary to me with all of those traits, of course) The only limit is gonna be himself on his future in the business. One had perhaps better pack a pair of sunglasses with this kid, because his future is bright.”

In closing I want to thank Lars Manderson for taking out the time to put up with my constant hounding through email and bugging him at a show or two. I also want to thank Missouri Wrestling Revival (http://missouriwrestlingrevival.wordpress.com/) for their help and putting this article on their website.

One more thing from Lars Manderson:
“In closing, to the fans. Every wrestler deeply appreciates your cheers, your boos, every reaction that you give us. We love the autographs, the pictures, and the appreciation that you show us. Keep coming to the shows, keep getting louder, because without you we are just grow men in spandex and leather boots pretending to fight each other. You make it real. And if you’ll indulge me, I don’t care if there are 10 or 10,000 it is all the same, each and every Manderfan will be chanting my name
“Man-der-son, Man-der-son, Man-der-son” from the moment I hit that curtain, until my opponent hits the mat.

All of my Manderfans will party long after that.

So when I come to your town get to your seat and bring all your friends,
cause when Lars is in the ring the show never ends.”

Scott Hall comes to St Louis April 30th

415 N Long St
Caseyville, IL 62232-1019

St Louis fans one of the original NWO members, Scott Hall will be in St Louis for a wrestling spectacular that you will not want to miss on April 30th.

Scott Hall has been a former AWA Tag Team Champion with Curt Hennig, and then exploded at the WWE as Razor Ramon. As Razor Ramon he would be a prominent figure during the Attitude era.

He would go on to defeat Shawn Michaels at Wrestlemania in a Ladder match, in what many still consider the standard for that type of match to this day.

During the Monday Wars it would be Scott Hall who would invade WCW along with Kevin Nash and Hulk Hogan as the NWO changing wrestling as the world knew it.

Since then you have seen him at TNA Wrestling, Juggalo Championship Wrestling and host of the his very own internet show  Last Call with Scott Hall .

You will not want to miss a true rebel of Pro Wrestling on April 30th .

Plus

The Midwest Sweetheart Santana G making her way back home from thrilling fans in Flordia. One of the most popular young wrestlers in Florida she has been improving with each match while taking on many of the best in the sport including Becky Bayless(Cookie on TNA) MsChif, Roxxie Lottalove, and Jessika Haze.

Fans of the big men will love the massive monster known as Rick Fuller. Fuller has been in the ring with Hulk Hogan, Booker T and Jeff Jarrett.

A man who defies gravity is the man Jonathan Gresham. Gresham is one of the most exciting young stars in the game today. Recently seen on Ring Of Honor on DirectTV on HDNet.

The bad boys of the Midwest the Kansas City Killers will be in the house as Mark Sterling and Jeremy Wyatt are always worth the price of admission.

St Louis’s own The Lumberjacks Abe and Gabe have been looking for someone to step up for some time now. Who will be that team to take on one of the most decorated tag teams in ST Louis’s history ?

Brandon Espinosa has impressed the fans from city to city and will look to pick up a huge win at VFW Pro Wrestling Showcase.

Dave Vaughn “The wrestling machine” had a great 2010 and been heating up in 2011. Vaughn will be in action with his no nonsense

The powerhouse known as Nation will be coming to St Louis. Trained by former WWE Superstar MR Hughes, you will not want to miss Nation tear it up on April 30th.

Wrestling fans this event is shaping up to be a great one, Mark your calendar to meet one of the best ever in Scott Hall along with the top young stars of the Midwest on April 30th.

More to be announced.
Card Subject to change

Meet the Original Diva Sunny at Pro Wrestling Next on October 22

 

PWN is proud to announce that on Friday, October 22nd, the original WWE Diva Tammy Sytch (Sunny) will be making a special appearance to meet fans and sign autographs! Tammy who has also appeared in ECW and WCW will be available before the show and during intermission to sign autographs and pose for pictures.

Plus

PWN Championship Tournament Match
Mark Sterling vs. Davey Richards

Live @ The Institute of Therapeutic Massage in Davenport, IA, Redefined will feature the start of an 8-man tournament to crown a new PWN Champion and the first match announced is NWA Central States Champion, Mark Sterling taking on Ring of Honor and NJPW star Davey Richards. Highly considered to be the “Best in the World” today, Richards looks to make a splash in his PWN debut again one of the midwest’s most established stars.

Matt Murphy thoughts on Ricky Steamboat: The Life Story of the Dragon 3-Disc DVD Set

 

By Matt Murphy -Courtesy of Matt Somebody-The Online Home of Writer and Former Wrestler Matt Murphy

Memories of my childhood idol and thoughts on the recently released DVD set.

WWE takes a lot of heat from traditionalist wrestlers and fans, but the company has certainly shown a commitment to keeping professional wrestling’s rich history alive in recent years.  They’ve done through their annual WWE Hall of Fame inductions and the release of classic video footage via WWE Classics and DVD collections.

There have been dozens of WWE DVD sets released and I hope there are many more.  While I like to watch the matches, I love watching the documentaries.  The stories about wrestlers and promotions, featuring video clips, photos, and interviews, are sometimes more interesting than the in-ring action.

In 2008, I sat quietly in the Harley Race Wrestling Academy while the WWE documentarian interviewed Joe Hennig for The Life and Times of Mr. Perfect and then covered a lot of different topics with Harley Race for what I assume found its way onto several DVDs and WWE Classics features.  It was interesting to watch the way they blacked out the windows, unplugged all telephones, closed the gym next door, rearranged everything in sight, and experimented with different lighting schemes.

When I learned that WWE was going to release a Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat DVD set, I was thrilled. Steamboat was my childhood idol.  To illustrate my feelings for Steamboat, here’s a piece from the revised edition of my autobiography (available in 2011), now titled, THE SOMEBODY OBSESSION: A JOURNEY FROM THE WELFARE LINE TO THE SPOTLIGHT:

My love for wrestling grew to an obsession in late-1986. During a challenge for the WWF Intercontinental Title, Steamboat suffered a “crushed” larynx at the hands of the defending champion, “Macho Man” Randy Savage. Watching Steamboat gasp for breath while paramedics and WWF officials scrambled to save him, I was first paralyzed with fear. Then I cried. A lot. Steamboat was sidelined for several weeks. I forgot about my own problems and my world revolved around the weekly updates on Steamboat’s condition. During this time, WWF aired an interview with Steamboat’s doctor, who said that “the Dragon” should never step into the ring again, and a vignette in which Steamboat went through speech therapy. On January 3, 1987, Steamboat guest-starred on an episode of Sidekicks, a crime drama starring Ernie Reyes Jr. Later that night, on Saturday Night’s Main Event, Savage was about to injure George “the Animal” Steele the same way he’d injured Steamboat weeks before. “The Dragon” came to ringside, restrained by several WWF officials, and saved his friend Steele.

That was it; I was hooked. My future was decided — I was going to become a professional wrestler just like my idol, Ricky “the Dragon” Steamboat. I immersed myself deep in the mysterious world of wrestling, worshiping Steamboat. He was tough, exciting, and he represented good (me) overcoming evil (all the sources of my childhood angst). When Steamboat beat Savage for the WWF Intercontinental Championship at Wrestlemania III, he did it, I thought, just for me.

When I got into the wrestling business, everyone, it seemed, listed Steamboat as their wrestling idol.  I couldn’t help but feel a little annoyed by it–growing up, everyone around me was a Hulkamaniac and my love for Steamboat had set me apart from the rest of the pack.  Now, I was just another Steamboat fan.

I had the pleasure of meeting Steamboat during an autograph signing before a WLW show in 2004.  I had met countless stars and never asked anyone for an autograph, a fact in which I took a great deal of pride.  But when I met Steamboat, I couldn’t resist getting a Polaroid taken and signed.  B.J. Race, who knew how I felt about “the boys” asking for pictures and autographs, gave me a confused look.  I explained to her that Steamboat was the man who inspired me to become a wrestler.  I’d love to say that the Polariod of me and my idol is prominently displayed in my writing den, but the truth is I was so damned caught up in the moment that I left the picture behind.

I met Steamboat a second time while I was a manager at a bar & grill in Lake Ozark.  He came in with a friend of his and ordered dinner after he appeared at another one of Harley’s shows.  The server placed his check on the table and I hurried to pick it up.

“This one’s on me,” I said.

“Why’s that?” Steamboat asked.

I looked over my shoulder.  I didn’t want to draw attention to him. “Please.  It would mean a lot to me.”

He thanked me and shook my hand. On his way out the door, he waved goodbye and said, “Thanks, Matt.”

The bartender recognized Steamboat and I shushed him long enough for my idol to pull out of the parking lot.

The third time I met Steamboat was before a Ring of Honor show in Dayton, Ohio.  I rode there with my friend Ace Steel, who Steamboat knew well, and we picked him up at the hotel.  He was cordial to me and he chatted away with Ace about Ritchie, Steamboat’s son, who was racing trucks at the time.  I just sat in the back seat and kept my mouth shut, dying to shoot the breeze with Steamboat but shy as a schoolgirl.

Two years ago, Ritchie came to Eldon to train at the Harley Race Wrestling Academy.  We hung out a couple times and he seemed to be a likeable guy, but I hated to see people treat second- and third-generation stars different from the rest of the students and I knew that I wouldn’t treat him the same as everyone else.  How could I?  Soon after Ritchie was born, there was an article in WWF Magazine with pictures of my idol and his newborn son.  Because I was a first-class wrestling nerd with a big imagination, the eight-year-old version of me thought that I would be the guy who’d bridge the gap between Steamboat generations; I imagined that I’d learn the ropes from Ricky as his tag team partner during the last years of his career and then team with Ritchie during the last years of my career. That, of course, didn’t happen, and memories of my wrestling weirdness haunted me when I was around Ritchie.  Somehow, it just felt right to keep my distance from him.  He’s now training with Florida Championship Wrestling in Tampa and is under developmental contract with WWE.

Last year, Steamboat was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.  The next night, at Wrestlemania, he participated in a handicap match against Chris Jericho.  I couldn’t watch it live.  I’d seen too many legends perform past their prime and I couldn’t stand to watch my idol embarrass himself.  After I read a report of the match on the Internet which described his great performance, I bought the replay and watched it.  Then, the next night, he participated in a 10-man tag team match.  I’m about as emotionless as they come, but there’s a chance that a couple tears trickled down my cheeks while Steamboat battled once again and the crowd chanted, “You’ve still got it!”

The 3-disc DVD set, titled Ricky Steamboat: The Life Story of the Dragon, was released last Tuesday.  I bought it that morning, brought it home, and watched the entire documentary and a few matches.

The documentary was awesome.  It featured interviews with Ricky, several current and former stars, and even Ritchie.  While I watched and listened to “the Dragon” talk about his career, I thought about how he impacted my life and I wished that I could have told him that during any one of our three encounters.

There are a thousand different matches that could have been added to the DVD set, but I’m happy with their selections.  One that I’m especially glad they included was the WCW World Tag Team Title match from Clash of the Champions XVII, a match in which Steamboat made a surprise return, teaming with Dustin Rhodes to beat Arn Anderson and Larry Zbyszko for the championship.  When the match originally aired, it brought me a lot of joy at a time in my life when that was an emotion I seldom felt.

A couple days after Steamboat’s DVD was released, he was hospitalized with serious medical issues.  While I tried to process the information I’d just read, I walked into the living room, where my four-year-old son, Hunter, was holding the Steamboat DVD set.

“Can we watch Ricky Steamdragon?” he asked.

“You mean Ricky ‘the Dragon’ Steamboat?”

“Uh-huh.”

I put in Disc 3, sat down, and made room for my son.  Together, we watched the Iron Man Challenge Match between Steamboat and Rick Rude from Beach Blast ‘92.

“I like Ricky Steamdragon,” Hunter said a few minutes into the match. “He’s my favorite.”

This time, I was happy to hear someone else say that.

For more Matt Murphy check out his website here.

MECW Star Barry Ryte to appear in 2010 14th Annual ECWA SUPER 8 TOURNAMENT

We would like to congratulate MECW Star Barry Ryte in his opportunity to appear at the 14th annual ECWA Super 8 Tournament later this summer on Sat. July 10, 2010 in Newark DE.

The Super 8 Tournament is an annual professional wrestling tournament held by the East Coast Wrestling Association. The eight-man tournament is known for jumpstarting the careers of many independent wrestlers, often booking veterans and relatively unknown wrestlers alike. It has also served as a springboard to stardom for some of its past competitors (such as Billy Kidman, Christopher Daniels, A.J. Styles, Petey Williams and Matt and Jeff Hardy) in major promotions such as WCW, WWE and TNA.

This years participants are

1)Nick “U-GENE” Dinsmore
2) Austin Creed

3 ) Former WLW trainee Tommaso Ciampa

4) Barry Ryte
5) Alex Reynolds
6) Chris Wylde
7) Scott Wright
8) Brian Milonas
For a full run down on all of these guys including MECW Star Barry Ryte click here .

Past Champions of this tournament are as follows

• 1997: Ace Darling
• 1998: Lance Diamond
• 1999: Steve Bradley
• 2000: Christopher Daniels
• 2001: Low Ki
• 2002: Donovan Morgan
• 2003: Paul London
• 2004: Christopher Daniels
• 2005: Petey Williams
• 2006: Davey Richards
• 2007: Jerry Lynn
• 2008: Aden Chambers
• 2009: Nick Logan

MECW Returns to action on May 22

3XWrestling Presents Annual Gauntlet for the Gold on May 7th.

April 28, 2010

Des Moines-based 3XWrestling Presents Annual Gauntlet for the Gold
May 7th Event Features Biggest Battle Royal In The History of Des Moines!

DES MOINES, Iowa – Fresh off “The Rebel” Jeremy Wyatt and Tyler Black battling to a 30-minute time-limit draw in one of the greatest matches in 3XW history earlier this month, Des Moines-based 3XWrestling (3XW) is set to impress fans once again as it presents Over the Top on May 7th at the Des Moines Social Club, one of the top venues for professional wrestling in the Midwest.

Featuring some of the most talented wrestlers in the United States, Over the Top is scheduled to feature a variety of compelling matches, including the fifth annual “Gauntlet for the Gold” battle royal!

Commercial:

Here’s the Over the Top TV commercial that is scheduled to air this week during TNA Impact and next week during WWE NXT and TNA Impact for those with Mediacom cable in Des Moines. It will also air throughout both weeks on a variety of channels carried by Mediacom.

3XW Outside the Ring:

From the 3XWrestling studios, it’s the May 2010 edition of 3XWrestling’s acclaimed web show Outside the Ring! This episode catches up wrestling fans on all the news following the hugely successful Spring Showdown event in April and builds toward the highly anticipated Over the Top event on Friday, May 7th at the Des Moines Social Club. Visit http://www.3xwrestling.com/for more information about upcoming events, view the Match of the Month and to visit Shop3XW, the official online store of 3XWrestling! Tickets for Over the Top are available at http://www.3XWrestling.com and at Jay’s CD & Hobby, 5921 S.E. 14th St in Des Moines, Iowa.

http://www.3xwrestling.com/videos.htm

3XW Match of the Month:

The “Gauntlet for the Gold” battle royal has become one 3XW’s top yearly traditions and for the first time ever, the original “Gauntlet for the Gold” is available to watch for free! The winner of this Rumble-style battle royal earns a 3XW Heavyweight title shot. This battle took place as part of 3XW’s Road to Glory event on Feb. 18, 2006 in Des Moines, Iowa. For more information about one of the top wrestling promotions in the Midwest and to purchase event DVDs, visit http://www.3xwrestling.com/

Full Announced and Updated Card for Over the Top – 3XW‘s 60th Event!:

5th Annual “Gauntlet for the Gold” battle royal! – winner receives a future 3XW Heavyweight title shot! A new wrestler enters the ring every 60 seconds!
Confirmed entrants:
Rory Fox – National star who had a phenomenal series of matches with Wyatt for belt
Brian Ash – Former two-time 3XW Heavyweight champion, including being first to hold gold.
Maddog McDowell – Winningest battle royal competitor in 3XW history
“Delicious” Devin Carter – 2009 Gauntlet for the Gold Winner, first to enter No. 1 and win
Gage Octane – Former 3XW Heavyweight champion, has made final five of every Gauntlet
Mark Sterling – Former 3XW Pure Wrestling champion and considered a top threat to win
“The Viking Warrior” Kraig Keesaman - 3XW Pure Wrestling champion, longest undefeated
“The Right Price” Aaron Masterson – Just picked up first major victory of his career
“The Laotian Sensation” Ricky Kwong – Has not been pinned or submitted since May 2009
Krotch – Impressive speed and athleticism and unorthodox style counteract slim build
Sir Bradley Charles – Skilled rookie trained by Lance Storm has quickly become fan favorite
“The Canadian Sex Icon” Ryan Slade – One-half of very talented Sexy and Smooth team
A.J. Smooth – One-half of very talented and successful Sexy and Smooth tag team
Hunter Matthews – Rulebreaker now on a revenge mission after losing to Masterson
Brady A. Dezire – One of 3XW’s top cruiserweights, Dezire hopes third time’s the charm
“The American Fury” Jon West – Talented rookie trained by Carter looks to make impact
Mike Sydal or “The Unbreakable” Zach Thompson – Either aerialist is a dangerous threat

More to be named soon! See comments from all announced competitors on the May 2010 episode of Outside the Ring!

3XW Heavyweight championship!
3XW Cruiserweight champion “The Rockstar” Jimmy Rockwell
vs.
“The Rebel” Jeremy Wyatt (c)

Loser Leaves 3XWrestling!
“The Unbreakable” Zach Thompson - 2009 3XW “Most Popular Wrestler of the Year” vs. his High Flyers tag team partner, Mike Sydal – 2009 Pro Wrestling Illustrated “Rookie of the Year”

Grudge Match!
Mark Sterling vs. Gage Octane

3XW Pure Wrestling championship!
“The Right Price” Aaron Masterson vs. “The Viking Warrior” Kraig Keesaman (c)

Women’s Wrestling!
Claudia Del Solis vs. current SHIMMER and former WCW star Malia Hosaka

Also featuring an appearance by the Mid Iowa Rollers women’s roller derby team!

Tickets on sale at:

Jay’s CD & Hobby
5921 SE 14th
Des Moines, IA

Or at http://www.3XWrestling.com on the events page!

**A special note about Over the Top ticket sales: Starting with the May 7th event we will be doing a advance ticket price of $12.00 per general admission ticket and a night of the show/walk up price of $15.00 per general admission ticket. Kids tickets remain $6.00.

We want to make sure everyone is aware of this ahead of time and encourage everyone to pre-purchase tickets to retain the $12.00 ticket price.

If you have an advance purchase ticket you will get in to the show to get your seat 10 minutes earlier!

Advance tickets purchased through http://www.3XWrestling.com will be available to pick up at the event.**

$12.00 General Admission advance purchase
$6.00 Kids
FREE 3 & under

General admission tickets will be $15.00 the night of the event.
———————-
**After party at Z’s Bar – 1511 South Union St – Just south of Principal Park!**

Food & drinks are available at Z’s Bar.

Meet, greet & eat with your favorite 3XW wrestlers & staff.

Doors open for Over the Top at 7 p.m. (6:45 p.m. for advance ticket holders) for a 7:30 p.m. start time. The Des Moines Social Club is located at 1408 Locust St. in beautiful downtown Des Moines.

Founded in 2005, 3XWrestling, a Des Moines-based organization, has performed in front of thousands of fans across Iowa and been featured on KCWI TV, Des Moines Radio Group stations, Iowa Public Radio and in publications including the Des Moines Register, Juice, Cityview and Pro Wrestling Illustrated. 3XW events are held the first Friday of each month in Des Moines.

3XWrestling and its performers are also heavily involved with charity work. Most recently, 3XW and Toys For Tots worked together at November Knockout to collect toys to help provide a happier holiday for children.

In February 2009, one-legged wrestling star Zach Gowen competed in 3XW and helped raise over $10,000 to help the family of a young man whose leg was amputated due to his battle with cancer. All proceeds from that event we’re given to the family to offset medical costs, with every wrestler performing on a volunteer basis.

For more information about 3XWrestling, including details on purchasing advance tickets to events, bringing 3XW to your town and to watch 3XW’s highly-acclaimed monthly webshow Outside the Ring and the Free Match of the Month, please visit http://www.3XWrestling.com. Card subject to change.

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Missouri Sports Hall of Fame snubs pro wrestling

By Matt Murphy

I won’t rant long about this. The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame has inducted exactly two professional wrestling legends in its 60-year history. Sam Muchnick was inducted in 1992 and Lou Thesz was inducted in 2002. This is a slap in the face to professional wrestling and to the many wrestling legends deserving of inclusion.

Wrestling fans, wrestlers, promoters, writers — let’s let the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame know exactly how we feel about it! Whether they like it or not, professional wrestling has been a major part of Missouri’s rich sports history. They owe it to the legends and to all of us as fans to recognize our sport.

Here’s their info:
Website: www.mosportshalloffame.com
Address:
Missouri Sports Hall of Fame
3861 E. Stan Musial Drive
Springfield, Missouri 65809
Phone: (417) 889-3100 or (800) 498-5678
Fax: (417) 889-2761
Hours: Monday – Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

I’ve included an email exchange between me and Todd Yearack, who at the time worked for the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. For the record, no wrestlers, wrestling promoters, or wrestling announcers have been inducted since these letters.

From: Matt Murphy
Sent: Thursday, March 03, 2005 10:21 PM
To: Todd Yearack
Subject: MO Hall of Fame

Dear sir:

I am writing to inquire why an organization whose catchphrase is “All the memories and all the thrills of sports” has neglected to recognize so many stars of professional wrestling.

Harley Race with the Missouri State Heavyweight Championship belt.

(A total of 17 wrestlers held the Missouri State heavyweight championship from 1972 through 1985. Eight would hold major versions of the World heavyweight championship.)

Lake Ozark resident Harley Race was one of the most respected athletes of his era. He was an eight-time NWA World Champion professional wrestler (he broke 2002 Missouri Sports Hall of Fame inductee Lou Thesz’s record of six World Title reigns). He was also inducted into the WCW Hall of Fame in 1994 and the WWE Hall of Fame in 2004. Race currently runs World League Wrestling, an Eldon, MO-based small independent wrestling organization which has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for various charities in the state since 1999.

I certainly feel Mr. Race’s inclusion from the Hall of Fame is necessary. He is, after all, considered by many to be the greatest wrestler ever to lace up a pair of boots. Mr. Race is now sixty-one years old, and I think he should be inducted in the very near future.

Warrensburg native Bruce “Butch” Reed was a star football player for CMSU and one of the ground-breaking African-American athletes in professional wrestling. A former World Tag Team Champion and one of the top wrestlers of the 1980s, Bruce was among the first black professional wrestlers to achieve national superstardom.

Cowboy Bob Orton

St. Louis-area resident “Cowboy” Bob Orton is the father of current WWE superstar Randy Orton and a former WWE superstar himself. He is being inducted in the WWE Hall of Fame this year.

Bulldog Bob Brown

These are just a few notable pro wrestlers deserving of being recognized as the elite athletes in Missouri sports history. Others who deserve induction include wrestlers “Bulldog” Bob Brown, Rufus R. Jones, Mike George, and Bob Geigel, announcers Bill Kersten and Larry Matysik, and promoter Gus Karras.

While many don’t consider wrestling a sport, it is undoubtedly an important part of Missouri sports history. Just ask a bunch of Missourians about wrestling. “I remember watching Harley Race and Bulldog Bob Brown at Memorial Hall” and “I watched ‘Wrestling at the Chase’ every week with my family” will likely be responses you’ll hear often.

Please let me know what I can do or how many like-minded Missourians should contact you to accomplish my goal of seeing the elite of those who contributed to “All the memories and all the thrills of sports” in Missouri recognized properly.

Please let me extend my invitation for assistance. If you need anything, from doing research to writing bios to conducting interviews with any professional wrestler deserving of Missouri Sports Hall of Fame inclusion, please don’t hesitate to email or call me.

Thanks for your time, and I look forward to a response.
Matt Murphy
__________

Todd Yearack wrote:

Matt:

Thank you for your note about Mr. Race and a few of the other wrestling icons from Missouri. You are certainly on the right track with your suggestion that Mr. Race be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

He was given very strong consideration for our most recent induction ceremony (February 13th) and will be up for consideration again for 2006. If you wish, feel free to mail us a letter of recommendation/nomination on Mr. Race and I’ll be glad to include it in his nomination file.

Again, thank you for your interest in the Hall of Fame. I hope to hear back from you soon.

Received your letter, and thank you! If you wish, you are welcome to look into additional letters in support of Mr. Race. While the number of letters doesn’t have any true direct affect on the individual’s induction, it is nice to hear from a broad range of folks who support a given inductee. Anything that is sent to us will be put in Mr. Race’s file, which will be reviewed by the selection committee later this year.

Thanks,
Todd

__________

From: Matt Murphy
Sent: Friday, March 04, 2005 1:28 PM
To: Todd Yearack
Subject: RE: MO Hall of Fame

Dear Mr. Yearack:

Thank you for the speedy reply. I have attached a letter to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. If I need to send it through postal mail, please let me know to what address it needs to be sent and I will have a letter in the mail next week.

Please tell me if my letter will suffice. Would several dozen letters from other fans help the cause or would it just make a lot of unnecessary work for you and others involved with the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame? I’m willing to do as much work as it needed to witness Harley’s induction to the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

Matt Murphy

__________

Todd Yearack wrote:

Received your letter, and thank you! If you wish, you are welcome to look into additional letters in support of Mr. Race. While the number of letters doesn’t have any true direct affect on the individual’s induction, it is nice to hear from a broad range of folks who support a given inductee. Anything that is sent to us will be put in Mr. Race’s file, which will be reviewed by the selection committee later this year.

Thanks,
Todd

MWR Editors note:

Just recently MWR fans we pulled together to support the future of Midwest wrestling by having our voice heard in regards of Mike Sydal, a wrestler that we felt very strongly deserved to be the Pro Wrestling Illustrated Rookie of the Year.

Now it is time for us to pull together to remember the past wrestling stars that gave their body hearts and soul to entertain the Midwest before there was cable TV, internet and PPV, families came together too boo the bad guy and cheer their heroes. On a personal level my dad who is not a wrestling fan at all does not have a clue who Shemus or The Miz is, but he knows who Rufus R Jones and Harley Race are.

I was shocked to hear that “MR. Race” had to have a file to be inducted in the Hall of Fame, just as Cooperstown would not be right with out Babe Ruth inducted or Michael Jordan in the NBA shrine, I just could not imagine that Harley Race was not there. Hopefully, once we are able to get the ball rolling with Race in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame the many other great men and women who entertained the very rich history of athletes in the sport of wrestling will be inducted as they should be.

No sport has a more passionate fan base that pro wrestling, lets show the support for Missouri’s greatest mat stars from the past by taking our friend Matt Murphy’s advice and send Missouri Sports Hall of Fame a letter requesting that Pro wrestling not to be over looked.

MWR Fans remember when sending the request to be professional and respectful in your letter to each and everyone at the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.

“World League Wrestling original Matt Murphy remembers 10 years of WLW”

{Missouri Wrestling Revival would like to thank World League Wrestling original Matt Murphy for taking the time to reminisce on the early days of WLW to honor their 10 years of greatness. MWR is proud to announce that Matt Murphy will have his own feature article on the site every Monday starting next week. }

With World League Wrestling’s 10th anniversary event just a couple weeks away, I’m sure I’m not the only old-timer whose mind keeps wandering back to the beginning a decade ago.

In July 1999, the Harley Race Wrestling Academy began holding tryouts and classes at Lewis Boxing Gym. It was a small space crammed in along a line of old brick buildings in a bad neighborhood in Springfield, Mo. There was no air conditioning and it reeked of weed, the severity dependent upon which Lewis brother was in the office. The boxing ring was manufactured in the depths of hell and sent to Springfield to punish me for my future transgressions.

There were six of us then: I was the first full-time student; Trevor Rhodes (Murdoch) came a week later along with his brother, independent veteran Johnny D; and the trainers were Derek Stone, Griz, and referee Skippy Johnson. We lived together in a small two-bedroom house and trained between six and eight hours every day.

Meanwhile, Harley and Dave Marquez built World League Wrestling from the ashes of World Legion Wrestling, a promotion I watched on syndicated television that had featured Sid Vicious, Big Sky (Tyler Mane, who played Sabertooth in X-Men, Michael Myers in the new Halloween, and the oil driller who beat up the lead character and then caught fire in Joe Dirt), “Atomic Dogg” Steve Sharp, Luminous Warrior, and the champ, “Sheik” Derek Stone.

After Marquez and the trainers traveled to Lake of the Ozarks to meet with Harley, Derek announced that the school was moving to Eldon. “Where?” I asked, still half-asleep on the couch.

Eldon, for those who’ve never been there, is not much different from every other small town in Missouri: a little backward at times, a little boring at times, but really not a bad place to live. Its population is between 4,000 and 5,000 and rent is cheap enough.

We were local celebrities when we first moved to Eldon, making personal appearances and doing radio and newspaper interviews regularly. And we were all with Harley Race, so if a half-dozen gorillas walking into a restaurant didn’t get their attention then Harley’s presence did.

I’ll never forget the first World League Wrestling event, held during a middle-school assembly Sept. 24, 1999 in Caledonia, Mo. Griz and I squared off in the main event and, due to ring announcer Steve Murphy’s claim that I was a “19-year-old rookie sensation making his professional wrestling debut” (I was 20 and I’d had three matches for East Coast promotions prior to training with Harley, so it was just a small fib), the crowd loved me. The three-match afternoon event was held during school hours with hopes that the kids would go home and beg their parents to bring them back for the full evening show. It was a flop: we had a crowd of about 60 that night.

We had some solid guys back then. Derek Stone was one of the best workers who never had a contract with a national promotion. Griz and “Tiger” Treach Phillips, Jr. were two solid veterans and great assets to their young opponents like me and Trevor. We really didn’t have a weak link on the card. We had other veterans like Johnny Jett, the Drill Instructor, Nasty Bill, Blade Boudreaux, Lance Jade (that’s not a typo, and Jade also had a contract with WWE for a year or two), Malia Hosaka, Brandy Alexander, T.S. Aggressor, Mr. Destiny, Johnny D, and Luminous Warrior.

I always wanted to do two things with my life: become a professional wrestler and make a positive impact on others. Within seven months of our first show, we were wrestling every weekend, usually doing two or three fundraising events. I was living my dream as a professional wrestler and I was part of a group that helped countless non-profit organizations raise funds to make the world a better place. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked for more, but I did.

Like every wrestler, I dreamed of becoming a WWE Superstar. I didn’t make it because I made stupid choices and didn’t earn it. I spent too much time dreaming and not enough time working. But when Trevor Murdoch, who I grew up in the business beside, called me to tell me he signed with WWE, I felt the same inexplainable feeling of pride that I imagined when I used to sit around dreaming about getting a contract with WWE myself. When his first vignette aired on Monday Night Raw, I was thrilled. I sat on the edge of my seat during his debut match. While my dream, as I envisioned it, never came to fruition, I got to go along for the ride while one of the best friends I’ve ever known lived out our dream. That was all the satisfaction I needed.

Times have certainly changed in the past 10 years. WLW talent, other promotions, and crowds have come and gone. Trevor and I were two boys in a locker room full of men, both living our dreams. Now, we’re two old-timers, sitting on the porch talking marriage and fatherhood and barbecue grills. Still, the olden days seem to find their way into most of our conversations.

In the earlier years, there seemed to be more children in the crowd. Many of the kids who were my biggest fans a decade ago have become adults. Some of them still remember me and others seem to have forgotten me. Some still smile when they see me and others seem to resent me. I’d guess it’s because I was somebody they saw as larger-than-life—as a star—when they were kids and now they feel duped when they see me grocery-shopping with my family.

The last time we performed at the Eldon High School gymnasium was one of our greatest events. It was in late-April 2000, with WCW stars Meng and Disco Inferno as the special guests. Disco Inferno pinned me that night in a singles match and then my team beat his in an eight-man tag match later that night. In the main event, Meng lost the WLW Heavyweight Championship to Trevor (with an assist from me). It was our first great event and still one of the best WLW events ever. It’s appropriate that WLW will celebrate its 10th anniversary by returning to the gym. I wish I had the desire, if not physical ability, to get back into the ring one last time for the anniversary event, but I’m proud the worker I became and I wouldn’t dream of getting into the ring at a level below that.

Since my in-ring career ended, I’ve worked with WLW off-and-on in various roles. While I’ve had my ups and downs with WLW, they will always be family.

Congratulations, World League Wrestling, on ten years of bringing exciting, family-friendly entertainment to Small Town, Missouri for good causes. Thank you for giving dreamers a place to learn and practice their chosen trade as they pursue stardom.

Matt Murphy

—————————————————————————————————————–

You will not want to miss the opportunity to support 10 years anniversary on October 3rd. Along with the current Superstars of WLW, fans will be able to meet former greats Bret “The Hitman” Hart, Akio Saito, Bob Geigel, Betty Nicoli, Bill Kersten, Mike George, Roger Kirby and of course the greatest of them all Harley Race.

Show at
ELDON HIGH SCHOOL GYM
101 S PINE ST ELDON MO 65026

Ticket Outlets
WLW HEADQUARTERS
EAGER BEAVER
ELDON CITY HALL
SWEAT GYM

Join MWR in Welcoming Josh Ray back from Iraq this Saturday!!

By Brian “Flair” Kelley

 

Join MWR to welcome back Josh Ray from Iraq 3-14-09 at High Voltage Wrestling!

 

We would like to invite every wrestling fan in the Midwest to join MWR as we welcome back our friend Josh C Ray as he returns from Iraq.  MWR has teamed up with High Voltage Wrestling to bring together a top notch card that promises to excite the young and old.

 

High Voltage Wrestling boasts a wide range of talent that includes:

 

HVW Champion “The Future” Donovan Ruddick- Ruddick is one of the most powerful men in the Midwest. With his manager “The Magic Man” Ruddick has had a stranglehold on the HVW title with no plans on letting it go anytime soon.

 

 The Japanese Nightmare Kahagas- Kahagas is one of the most underrated wrestlers in the nation and has battled with Dusty Rhodes, Tomko, and just recently wrestled a classic against Dingo at HVW in January.

 

Dingo- Dingo is a Champion where ever he goes. He currently holds the NWA Missouri and the IWA- Mid South Championship and the HVW title looks to be in his sights.   

 

“Big” Rick Fuller- Fuller has wrestled Hogan and Goldberg in WCW. Trained under WWE Superstars “Superfly” Jimmy Snuka and “Mr. USA” Tony Atlas. A Star in New Japan Pro Wrestling Fuller has been terrorizing wrestlers around the world with a chop that you have to hear to believe.

 

 

Brandon Espinoza – Multi-talented, Brandon came close to becoming the first HVW Champion in a three way with Ruddick and Kahagas. Now he sets his sights on the HVW Livewire title.  Look for an exciting match when he takes on fan favorite Gary J.

 

Gary J – Gary never fails to excite the crowd and is not afraid to put his body on the line. Come and see what the Gary J will do next!!

 

Some of the most talked about tag teams in the Midwest will be in St Louis as well. The devastating duo The Hooligans, the exciting Zero Gravity, the team of the future The Hybrids and one can not forget the HVW’s own Bandana Mafia. Teams that have graced the HVW ring in the past are The LONRS, The Blackhearts, and NBWA’s finest. If you like tag team action then you will love HVW.

 

That is not all….MWR is proud to bring to HVW two of the premier wrestlers in the Midwest. “The King of the 450″ Steve Anthony will be taking on “Superstar” Steve Fender These two men were chosen because they were two of Josh’s favorites in the ring. You will see quickly why Josh feels that way when two hook up. Both have trained under Pro Wrestling Legend Harley Race at WLW. Superstar Steve has been toured Japan several times and you recently saw Anthony wrestled at ROH debut in St Louis. This has a chance to be a match talked about in St Louis for years to come.

 

Don’t miss this opportunity to see stars around the nation this coming Saturday. Tickets are only $10.00. Children 7 and under is FREE!! HVW is supporting our troops by allowing all Military personal to save a dollar if you show you’re Military Id.

 

 

 

Doors open at 6:30 Show starts at 7:30.

We hope to see you there!!!